Chapter 5 Go with the Flow….
I was now no longer someone who rushed about needlessly, no; I now carefully listened and put things together for myself. I realised that, as Melina would be off at university during the week, I would be the one called on for ‘Royal Activities’ in the near future, being the older one who could look after the young Queen.
In the meantime we had this evening to get through. We were instructed to stay together during the night and to be very careful with any questions that may be sent our way, especially the personal ones. The evening was a formal sit-down meal with more speeches and a timetable for Queenly activities over the summer months. I expected that we would be going a little further afield in the off season to promote the town.
The three of us were on the top table with the dignitaries. The hotel manager sat next to me and was very nice. He told me that having the hotel with a reigning Princess was very good and that I was to report to HR on Monday morning at eight, as my duties would now to be adjusted as befitting my new status. I gathered that it was as much of a shock to him as it was to me that I got picked, no doubt the organisers had the other friend already pencilled in and he had never expected the result. No wonder the guy last week had said that I was needed ‘to make up the numbers’.
The evening was long and full of hot air but the food was good and I learned more about Bianca as the evening progressed. There were lots of candid photos but we did have to go and stand in front of a backdrop to have the official portrait taken by Lucca. This time he gave me a hug and then introduced me to his assistant “My wife, Daniela”. There goes that dream ending. I still liked him, though.
Eventually the celebrations ground to a halt and I was able to head towards my little room and get out of these heels. We were told to be back in these dresses at nine the next day, prepared for the parade and that day of festivities at the beach where we were supposed to smile a lot and be nice, even if we were hugged by smelly holidaymakers. I slept like a log and was still a bit groggy when my alarm woke me. I lay for a few minutes to gather my thoughts and realised that I was here, in this town, for the whole year until the next Fiesta. For some reason that felt comforting.
The next morning I was having an early breakfast when one of the salon ladies told me I was to go to the salon for a ‘touch up’ before I got dressed and they reworked the make-up and hair before I went up to my room and dressed in the light blue gown. Looking good and feeling better, I went out to where the parade started and met up with the other girls. Most of them looked a bit tired and I realised that I may well be the only one with an in-house beauty parlour.
The parade was better for the three of us as we had seats this time and did not have to wave madly all the time. We were all giggling at our regal arm movements but it was much easier on the muscles and also fitted our status. At the beach there was food, sideshows, booths with all those things one needs at the seaside and more booths from the bigger hotels offering discounted forward booking for next season. The whole thing was about making money and I had no problem with that as long as I earned enough to see me right for a while.
I did catch up with my earlier friends and stood with them while photos were taken to take back to Rawson so they could tell the story of the drowned piece of flotsam who became a princess. I told them that I would give them a call and let them know how I was getting on and also told them that I should be contactable at the hotel for the foreseeable future. As we parted, Emilio held me close and kissed my cheek, saying “You are so wonderful, Haley, I will remember you for ever.”
That afternoon I found that we had a full diary of appointments for the whole summer. There were appearances in shopping centres, hotel social evenings, welcoming duty at the airport, railway and bus station. It was like the old adage – if someone opened an envelope we would be there. Everything was on a tight schedule and most days would start with a salon touch up and a fitting of the clothes we would be wearing. I would not have to buy a thing for the next three months or so and I couldn’t see me being a chambermaid during this time. We did have a couple of days to reorganise our lives.
The Monday morning I didn’t know what I would be doing so just put on my cleaners shift dress and went down to HR to see what fate had brought me. The HR manager was all smiles as he laid out my new duties. As I would be on call for ‘princess work’ I would not have any set jobs in the hotel. Instead, I would be issued with some new uniforms befitting of my new status and would, when I wasn’t off doing the other job, be expected to base myself near reception and to be a hostess, helper and guide but on top of everything – smile a lot. He had allocated me a new bedroom on the ‘staff’ level which was bigger and had an ensuite and more hanging space. My pay had increased a little bit and he made sure that I understood that the arrangements were based on me staying with them until next summer, at least.
He had noted that Lucca wanted me to do modelling for the brochure and calendar and said that if I worked hard being nice to everyone there would be a chance of a Christmas bonus. Talk about showing the carrot! I assured him of my undying loyalty and took my new room key to go and move my slightly larger range of clothes. I moved it all into my new room and changed into something smart but casual and returned my shifts and waitress uniform to the lady in the laundry. As I was walking down one of the corridors I came across my old cleaning crew and they all curtsied before giving me hugs and congratulating me on my elevation to front-of-house.
My first job was to introduce myself to all the front-of-house staff and get to know them. It would be an odd situation for them as well so I did need to tread carefully. I had chats with the doormen, receptionists, dining room manager, bar manager, pool manager and anyone else I came across who had official name badges. I suppose I would get my own name badge in a day or so.
I did get one the next day that read ‘Princess Haley, Hotel Ambassador. Gran Hotel Provincial.’ as well as three new dresses, all in light blue; with an embroidered name on the left chest that said the same. I was expected to wear these all the time, in or out of the hotel, and to only take them off if I was supplied with clothing for a special occasion. I was also given a pack of hose in a dark taupe that I was to wear every day. I also had a standing reservation at the salon every other day. If this lot didn’t make me a total girl, nothing would! I took a little time at the hotel lingerie shop where I was fitted with a good bra and pant set at house discount, bought another three sets in different colours, and set up an account.
So, the light blue go-to girl was created. When I was not out with the Queen I was in the reception area looking happy and dispensing a helping hand to anyone with a problem. I developed a real rapport with the various managers as I was able to shortcut problems before they blew up into a proper complaint and also was there to look after any important guests. It was hard work and long hours but I loved it. I had my board and meals provided, my clothes regularly cleaned and I hardly had to spend any money that I was earning.
The Princess business was all about being happy and smiling when your feet hurt, your back ached, or, in Biancas’ and Melinas’ cases, your period cramps just made you want to curl up and die. My ‘unspoken’ duties included keeping the two younger girls on the straight and narrow. We three pressed the flesh in all of the shopping centres, toured the beaches, and greeted holiday makers getting off busses, trains and planes. One funny moment was when we were greeting a flight from America and one Spanish speaking woman screeched “You freaking drag me all the freaking way here and the freaking first people I see are freaking extras from freaking Disneyland!”
Generally, the Queenly events were afternoons so I was in the hotel in the mornings being cheerful and helpful. We did have a few evening events but, in the main, it was not overly exhausting. I had my breakfasts in the hotel kitchen and my lunches there as well, often before walking the dining room and chatting to guests. If my outside duties finished early, I often helped with the serving at the hotel dinner time. By the end of February I was a well-known sight around the front-of-house and loving every minute of it.
While we had the three of us together, Lucca took the advantage to get us to pose at various holiday spots around the town. We did the beaches, the Sea Lion statue, the better facades of various buildings and other beauty spots. The calendar was printed up and was in the shops in December, along with the new brochure advertising the next year activities and contact details. There were also posters in shop windows showing us all looking fit, healthy and, above all, incredibly sexy. I spent a lot of time in a bikini.
Marianne G 2021
